我们盼来了今年BBC Sound 2007的获奖者Mika的个人专辑了，这位黎巴嫩裔的歌手已经让无数人开始用许久不见的字眼来形容他的嗓音，不过把他的狂放的演唱比作Freddie Mercury我看也不是很过分。他的首支单曲已经在冠军位置上待了三个礼拜了，无论是不是打破四周的纪录，Mika都已经证明他是近年来最成功的新人，也是两年失误之后，BBC预测正确的明日之星。Mika的这张Life in Cartoon Motion已经不完全是一张专辑了，他是一张masterpiece，每首歌曲都充满了Mika的个人魅力，就是今年年底才发行这张专辑，我也觉得等待完全值得。Grace Kelly的确让人想起Queen的许多音乐，那种史诗般的感觉，那种真正活在音乐中的个性，Mika的演唱是无与伦比的，更无与伦比的是这张专辑的音乐，在Grace Kelly之后的第二首单曲还是同样歌剧般的歌曲Love Today，也许不是第二首单曲的最佳选择，不过Mika的演唱要来的比Grace Kelly更加大胆，假声的演唱都胜过了Scissor Sisters，实际上，歌迷们比较喜欢的还是另外一首歌曲，他是专辑中最佳，最与众不同，最有力量的作品，那就是Relax, Take It Easy。想象一下当年Scissor Sisters走红的歌曲Comfortably Numb，Relax, Take It Easy是一首原创的Comfortably Numb，虽然不是专辑的第二单曲，单曲已经出现了英国下载排行榜上了，放下了华丽的外衣的是My Interpretation，Daniel Powter一般的抒情歌曲，没有美轮美奂的假声，没有复杂的电子，有的只是比较真诚的原来的Mika，Lollipop则更加像是一首音乐剧的歌曲，中速的节奏，catchy的旋律，咬字有特别的清晰，Mika的音乐从某种意义上说是一种做秀，他把一切能够的元素都运用起来，比如在Any Other World中，弦乐让你的心跳加速，而歌曲的环境又像是Mad World一般的黑暗，结尾的Happy Ending同样不容错过。

The Search for Everything was preceded by the release of two EPs each featuring four new songs from the album. The album's lead single, "Love on the Weekend", was released on November 17, 2016.The first wave, The Search for Everything: Wave One, released on January 20, 2017.The second wave, The Search for Everything: Wave Two was released on February 24, 2017.

A dusky-voiced 20-year-old singer/songwriter from deep in the mountains of Arizona, Zella Day makes electro-charged, guitar-driven indie-pop that's steeped in a magic of her own invention. Revealing her own power to bend reality into something much more enchanted, KICKER arrives with Zella having already racked up nine #1 Hype Machine singles and drawn raves from the likes of Interview, Vice, Nylon, and Soma, who note that Zella is "There is an incandescent quality that Zella Day possesses… it resonates throughout her songs with flawless grace." Fresh off a West Coast tour—and gearing up to play major festivals like Lollapalooza this summer—Zella is awaiting KICKER's release with a fluttery anticipation. "Sometimes I have to close my eyes when I'm listening to these songs, because I feel like I'm telling everyone all my secrets," she says. "But at the same time I'm proud that I was able to be that fearless and not hold back from putting so much truth into the album."

Sob Rock is the sound of a man alone in his success. Even if this is one of John Mayer’s stronger albums, the whole thing feels self-consciously minor.

Black Country, New Road return with the news that their second album, “Ants From Up There”, will land on February 4th on Ninja Tune. Following on almost exactly a year to the day from the release of their acclaimed debut “For the first time”, the band have harnessed the momentum from that record and run full pelt into their second, with “Ants From Up There” managing to strike a skilful balance between feeling like a bold stylistic overhaul of what came before, as well as a natural progression.
Released alongside the announcement the band (Lewis Evans, May Kershaw, Charlie Wayne, Luke Mark, Isaac Wood, Tyler Hyde and Georgia Ellery) have also today shared the first single from the album, ‘Chaos Space Marine’, a track that has already become a live favourite with fans since its first public airings earlier this year - combining sprightly violin, rhythmic piano, and stabs of saxophone to create something infectiously fluid that builds to a rousing crescendo. It’s a track that frontman Isaac Wood calls “the best song we’ve ever written.” It’s a chaotic yet coherent creation that ricochets around unpredictably but also seamlessly. “We threw in every idea anyone had with that song,” says Wood. “So the making of it was a really fast, whimsical approach - like throwing all the shit at the wall... and just letting everything stick.”
Their debut “For the first time” is a certain 2021 Album of the Year, having received ecstatic reviews from critics and fans alike as well as being shortlisted for the prestigious Mercury Music Prize. Released in February to extensive, global, critical support - perhaps best summed up by The Times who wrote in their 5/5 review that they were "the most exciting band of 2021" and The Observer who called their record "one of the best albums of the year" - the album made a significant dent on the UK Albums Chart where it landed at #4 in its first week, a remarkable achievement for a largely experimental debut record. The album also reached #1 on Any Decent Music, #2 at Album Of The Year and sat at #1 on Rate Your Music for several weeks, remaining the record to generate the most fan reviews and site discussion there this year. Black Country, New Road were also declared Artist Of The Week and Album Of The Week by The Observer, The Line Of Best Fit and Stereogum, and saw features, including covers and reviews, from the likes of Mojo, NPR, CRACK, Uncut, The Quietus, Pitchfork, The FADER, Loud & Quiet, The Face, Paste, The Needle Drop, DIY, NME, CLASH, So Young, Dork and more.
With “For the first time” the band melded klezmer, post-rock, indie and an often intense spoken word delivery. On “Ants From Up There” they have expanded on this unique concoction to create a singular sonic middle ground that traverses classical minimalism, indie-folk, pop, alt rock and a distinct tone that is already unique to the band.
Recorded at Chale Abbey Studios, Isle Of Wight, across the summer with the band’s long-term live engineer Sergio Maschetzko, it’s also an album that comes loaded with a deep-rooted conviction in the end result. “We were just so hyped the whole time,” says Hyde. “It was such a pleasure to make. I've kind of accepted that this might be the best thing that I'm ever part of for the rest of my life. And that's fine.”
Black Country, New Road's live performances have already gained legendary status from fans and has seen them labelled "one of the UK's best live bands" by The Guardian. After the success of their livestream direct from London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, stand-out performances at SXSW and the BBC 6 Music Festival, and following a sold-out UK tour this summer, high-profile festival appearances, and a 43 date UK & EU tour to follow in the Autumn with sold out US dates next year, the London-based seven-piece today announce further UK & IE dates in support of the album for April 2022, preceded by their biggest London headliner to date at The Roundhouse in February.
Black Country, New Road Live at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, mastered by Christian Wright at Abbey Road, will be available as part of the Deluxe LP and CD versions of ‘Ants From Up There’.
Fans who pre-order any format of ‘Ants From Up There’ from the Black Country, New Road store, their Bandcamp page and the Ninja Tune shop, will be able to gain access to the pre-sale for the 2022 UK headline tour dates.
The full set of dates are as follows:
22/10/2021 - Rotondes, Luxembourg
23/10/2021 - Bumann & Sohn, Cologne – DE (SOLD OUT)
24/10/2021 - Botanique Orangerie, Belgium – BE (SOLD OUT)
25/10/2021 - Le Trabendo, Paris - FR
27/10/2021 - Le Grand Mix, Tourcoing - FR
28/10/2021 - Lieu Unique, Nantes - FR
29/10/2021 - Rockschool Barbey, Bordeaux - FR
1/11/2021 - Teatro Duse, Bologna - IT
2/11/2021 - Auditorium Della Mole, Ancona - IT
05/11/2021 - Circolo della Musica, Turin - IT
06/11/2021 - Bogen F, Zürich - CH (SOLD OUT)
08/11/2021 - Underdogs', Prague - CZ (SOLD OUT)
09/11/2021 - Frannz Club, Berlin - DE (SOLD OUT)
10/11/2021 - Hydrozagadka, Warsaw - PL (SOLD OUT)
11/11/2021 - Transcentury Update Warm Up @ UT Connewitz Leipzig - DE
12/11/2021 - Bahnhof Pauli, Hamburg - DE
14/11/2021 - Le Guess Who? Festival, Utrecht - NL
16/11/2021 - Paradiso Noord, Amsterdam - NL (SOLD OUT)
20/11/2021 - Super Bock En Stock, Lisbon - PT
21/11/2021 - ZDB, Lisbon - PT (SOLD OUT)
29/11/2021 - Chalk, Brighton - UK (SOLD OUT) *
30/11/2021 - Junction 1, Cambridge - UK (SOLD OUT) *
01/12/2021 - 1865, Southampton - UK *
03/12/2021 - Arts Club, Liverpool - UK (SOLD OUT) *
04/12/2021 - Irish Centre, Leeds - UK (SOLD OUT) *
06/12/2021 - O2 Ritz Manchester, Manchester – UK * (SOLD OUT)
07/12/2021 - Newcastle University Student Union, Newcastle Upon Tyne - UK *
08/12/2021 - SWG3, Glasgow - UK *
09/12/2021 - The Mill, Birmingham - UK * (SOLD OUT)
10/12/2021 - The Waterfront, Norwich - UK *
12/12/2021 – Marble Factory, Bristol – UK (SOLD OUT) *
13/12/2021 - Y Plas, Cardiff - UK *
15/12/2021 - Whelan's, Dublin - IE (SOLD OUT) *
08/02/2022 - Roundhouse, London - UK
18/02/2022 – DC9 Nightclub, Washington, DC – US (SOLD OUT)
19/02/2022 – The Sinclair, Cambridge, MA – US (SOLD OUT)
22/02/2022 – Sultan Room, Turk’s Inn, Brooklyn, NY – US (SOLD OUT)
23/02/2022 – Elsewhere, Brooklyn, NY – US
25/02/2022 – Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia, PA – US (SOLD OUT)
26/02/2022 – Bar Le Ritz, Montreal, QC – CAN
28/02/2022 – Third Man Records, Detroit, MI – US
01/03/2022 – Lincoln Hall, Chicago, IL – US
03/03/2022 – Barboza, Seattle, WA – US (SOLD OUT)
04/03/2022 – Polaris Hall, Portland, OR – US
05/03/2022 – The Miniplex, Richard’s Goat Tavern, Arcata, CA – US
06/03/2022 – Great American Music Hall, San Francisco, CA – US
08/03/2022 – Zebulon, Los Angeles, CA – US (SOLD OUT)
09/03/2022 – Regent Theater, Los Angeles, CA – US
06/04/2022 - The Foundry, Sheffield - UK
07/04/2022 - O2 Academy, Oxford - UK
09/04/2022 - Liquid Room, Edinburgh - UK
10/04/2022 - The Empire, Belfast - UK
11/04/2022 - 3Olympia, Dublin - IE
13/04/2022 - Albert Hall, Manchester - UK
14/04/2022 - Rock City, Nottingham - UK
16/04/2022 - Concorde 2, Brighton - UK
17/04/2022 - O2 Academy, Bristol - UK
02/06/2022 – Primavera Sound Festival, Barcelona - ES
08/07/2022 - Pohoda Festival, Trencin – SK
* - with Ethan P. Flynn
Pre-sale to The Roundhouse show and April 2022 UK / IE dates available from Tuesday 19th October at 9am BST. Tickets go on general sale on Friday 22nd October at 9am BST.

The 20-year-old's self-assured second album documents her hopes, fears and trauma with thrilling emotional candour

Harry's House. May 20th.

If only the makers of Emoji would make a record, we could have explained this one a lot better. ⚫️... also available on 💿.

Four months after “drivers license,” pop’s newest star offers a nimble and lightly chaotic collection of breakup tunes filled with melancholy and mischief.

Post Malone stirs a mix of genres into his own sonic sound that’s both intoxicating and invigorating. His RIAA 3x Platinum certified debut album, Stoney, led the genre-bending Dallas, TX artist to his first Top 10 Billboard 200 and first #1 R&B/Hip-Hop Album while being the “#1 Debut Hip-Hop Artist of 2016”. 2019 has been packed with one milestone and achievement after another for Post Malone including “Congratulations” being certified Diamond by the RIAA.

Limited Edition Japanese pressing of this album comes housed in a miniature LP sleeve. Rhino. 2006.

Digitally remastered edition of their 1985 multi-platinum album, their biggest ever. Nine tracks, featuring the #1 smash 'Money For Nothing', plus the top 10 'Walk Of Life' & the top 20 hit 'So Far Away'. 1996 Mercury Records release.